10 Things That Will Happen If Everyone Raises Their Minimum Wage To $15 An Hour

Recently there has been a lot of discussion about raising the minimum wage. Many politicians and labor activists want it set at $15 an hour.
Certain U.S. cities have even begun to implement this plan. In places like Seattle, $15 minimum wage is well on its way. However, in this article we’re going to look at a “what if” scenario, specifically what if every nation around the world raised their minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Here are 10 things that would occur due to this decision.

1. Increased Automation

With increased wages comes… More companies switching to automated systems. Rather than paying employees more, most companies will choose to switch over to using robots for all their mundane tasks.
Fast-food places will have computers that take customer orders, grocery stores will use more self-checkouts, and factories will create more robotic assembly lines.
This will save companies money in the long-run, but will lead to many low-skilled workers being out of a job and unable to find work.

2. Poor People Would Stay Poor

Crazy as it sounds, raising the minimum wage would not end world poverty.
While the idea of instituting a $15 an hour minimum wage is meant help struggling workers, it actually wouldn’t do much. According to studies, only 12.7% of America’s poorest workers hold minimum wage jobs. The rest already hold jobs were they earn roughly $10 to $15, or more.
As it turns out, most struggling workers face financial difficulty because of factors beyond their hourly earnings.